Improvement in traction-engines



3 Sheets-Sheet 1.

R. BROJA. Traction-Engine.

Patented Dec. 3, I878.

In vnf 0 r Kid'ard I'D/'0,

"JEN-Ra, PMOTO LITNOGRAPMER, WASHINGTON. D. c.

3 Sheets-Sheet 2 R.BROJA., Traction-Engine.

No. 210,492. Patented Dec. 3, 1878.

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3 she'etsshegt 3. R. BROJA, w Traction-Engine. No. 210,492. PatentedDec. 3, 1878.

-PETERS, FHOTO-UTHOGRAPMER. WASHINGTON representin g also the valvemechanism. Fig.

or spindles 0' of the driving-wheels. Said axle-spindles are inclined atlittle in a down- UNITED STATES PATENT ()FFICE.

RICHARD BROJA, OFI'ZAZBRZE, SILESIA, PRUSSIA.

IMPROVEMENT IN TRACTION-ENGINES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 210,492, dated December3, 1878; .application filed November 19, 1878.

To all whom'jt may concern:

Be it known that I, Brennan BROJA,16Sl(ling at Zabrze, Silesia, Prussia,have invented an Improved Traction-Engine, of which the following is aspecification:

The present invention relates to improvements in traction or roadengines, or locomotives adapted for ordinary roads; and it consistschiefly in the provision or employment of revolving wheels turningindependently of each other on a fixed axle, and provided with a seriesof reciprocating or sliding feet, which are capable of being forcedoutward from the periphery of the wheels, so as to press upon thesurface of the ground, and thereby effect the advance movement of theengine. The traction-feet are secured to sliding rods, which carrypistons,'moving in hollow spokes of the wheels, and the latter turn inproper relation with steam chests orchambers, so that steam can beconducted into the hollow spokes, for projecting the traction-feet toproduce the effective stroke, and for retracting said feet after theirtraction force has ceased.

The invention also consists in certain details of construction andarrangement, which will be hereinafter more fully described, and thenset forth in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, Figure1 is a side elevation of a traction-engine constructed according to myinvention. Fig. 2 is a plan or top view of the same, Fig. 3 is a frontelevation. Fig. 4 is a longitudinal vertical section of one of thetraction-wheels. Fig. 5 is a transverse section of the wheel and thesteam-chest. Fig. 6 is a cross-section of the steam-chest,

7 represents-the front covering-plate of the steam-chest. Fig. 8 is adetail view of one of the valves.

The letter K designates. a steam-boiler, which is of the constructioncommonly employed in locomotives. This boiler is encircled by a broadwrought-iron ring, A B, to which are welded or otherwise secured theaxle arms ward direction, so that the wheels mounted thereon will have atendency to press in an inward direction.

The driving-wheels, designated by the letters R It, are fitted looselyon the axle-spindles, so as to turn thereon in the manner of ordinarycarriage-wheels; and said wheels are secured in place by nuts andfriction-washers.

The spokes S of the wheels are made hollow, and each contain asteam-piston, I, and a piston-rod, S. Said piston-rods project throughthe periphery or rim of the wheel, and are provided with metallic shoesor feet Z. The admission of steam into each spoke above the pistoncontained therein iseftected by the channels or passages 19, and a likeadmission of steam, but in a reduced quantity, below the piston takesplace through the channels or passages q. The inlet-mouths of thesesteampassages are arranged in two concentric circles in the'hub of thewheel and around the axle-spindle, as is seen more fully in Fig. 4. Thechannels '1), which are made larger or wider than the channels q,conduct the steam above the piston, whereby the latter is forced fromthe center of the wheel toward the pe riphery thereof. The reversemovement or the piston, or retraction thereof, is effected by steamentering below the piston through .the tube t, this tube being incommunicationwith its corresponding channel q and spoke S.

The movement of the engine or locomotive in a forward direction may beillustrated by Fig. 4, in which an angle of forty-eight degrees, formedby the surface of the ground and a portion of the rim of the wheel, isindicated by the letters D E. All the pistons located within this anglereceive steam on their upper surface, whereby the shoes or feet Z'carried by the piston-rods are forced against or 'into the ground, thuspressing on turning the wheel in a forward direction. After thetraction-feethave exerted their effective stroke and passed out of thedescribed angle, then steam is admitted below the pistons of therespective shoes, so that the latter are drawn in an inward direction,and caused to enter recesses or seats formed for said shoes in the rimof the wheel. The shoes are held in this inactive position by thefriction of the pistons in the cylinders and the piston-rods in theirstuffing-boxes.

As the engine advances farther, the entire series of shoes aresuccessively brought into limited sliding movement on said axle-spindleswithout turning thereon. The wheels or the hubs thereof turn in contactwith the steamboxes, and both have flat bearing or contact surfaces, soas to produce a steam-tight joint.

Each steam-box is divided into two chambers, of which the one designatedby the let-' ters G H J Fig. 6, is in communication with the steam-domeof the boiler through the medium of the pipe m, and serves for thedistribution of live steam to the traction-wheel.

The chamber designated by the letters L M N, Fig. 6, is provided withthe pipe n, and serves for carrying off the exhaust or waste steam.

Each steam-box is, on the side adjoining the wheel -hub, provided with acovering or face plate, (shown in Fig. 7,) in which are formed slits oropenings c. These openings can be entirely or partially closed orcovered by means of two curved slide-valves, V W, located one in rear ofthe other on the inner side of the covering-plate, having the aforesaidopenings o. By closing part of the steam-inlet openings lying within theangle D E, heretofore mentioned, the pistons located within said anglereceive live steam only during a portion of the time in which they maybe within said angle, and this steam then acts by expansion as theengine progresses or the wheel revolves. In this manner I provide meanswhereby by the simple arrangementor position of the valves the steam canbe made to act with any de sired degree of expansive power.

The steam-tight joint between the steamboxes F F and the hubs of thedriving-wheels is effected as follows: A stuffing box, a b, welded tothe face-plate of each steam box or chest, receives a stufling-boxcover, 17:, fitted on the hub of the drivingwheel, and this cover issecured to the stuffing-box by bolts and nuts 3 as is shown in Fig. 5.

A plate, 0, fitted to the face of the wheelhub, is apertured in unisonwith the steampassages in said hub, is of the same diameter as theexternal diameter of the stufiing-box cover, and is forced against theface-plate of the steam-box when the bolts and nuts 9 are screwed up. Asthe steam-box is capable of slidin g on the axle-spindle to a limiteddegree, it will readily conform itself to or follow the side movementsof the drivin g-wheel, and this without causing an escape of steam, thejoint between the hub and steam-box being perfect at all times.

The mechanism for operating each pair of valves in both steam-boxes isconstructed as follows, viz: Two levers, 1', arranged one at -in abackward direction.

each side of a platform or cab, Y, are connected by means of rod 61 witha toothed bar or rack, T, which engages with a toothed or rack portionof the valve or slide \V. By operating said levers by hand the valve WVcan be set so as to vary the admission of steam to the hollow spokesduring the forward movement of the engine.

The levers f are loosely mounted 011 a transverse rock-shaft, g, andhave pawls, engaging with toothed segments, for lockin g said levers.The rock-shaft has foot-treadles and vertical arms orlevers at each end,which levers are connected, by rods (1, with rack-bars located in rearof the aforesaid rack-bars 1', and engaging with the toothed valves V.These lastmentioned valves can thus be operated by the feet of theengineer, and serve for controlling the flow of steam which is to servefor brakin g or arresting the engine or moving the same \Vhen steam isunequally admitted to both driving or traction wheels the latter willturn with different velocities, and therefore cause the engine to parsuea curved line or path. This result is accomplished by admitting a largerquantity of steam to one of the traction-wheels than to the other. Asthe driving-wheels are capable of revolving independently of each other,the engine can travel in a path of any desired curvature.

\Vhen the engine is lightly ballasted and running on a level orhorizontal road, then the expansive action of the steam will besuflicient to furnish the necessary propelling force. A fullsteam-pressure, however, is required on ascending or bad roads. Indescending an inclined road, the steanrpistons, before entering theangle in which they cause the shoes to make their effective strokeagainst the ground, will receive a small quantity of steam bymanipulating the inner valves, and this steam, acting against the topsof the pistons, will cause the shoes to be projected to a sufficientextent for enabling the same, by their frictional contact with theground, to act as a brake upon the wheels. Simultaneously with thisprojection of some of the shoes, those shoes located within the angle DE will be operated by the expansive action of the steam, and therebycause the engine to move forward at a uniform rate of speed.

In case it is found necessary to arrest the movement of the engine, thiscan be accomplished very quickly by moving the inner valves, \V, totheir full extent, whereby the shoes located within the angle D E areprojected against or forced into the ground. 3y simultaneously forcingback the valves W and drawing up the valves \V, steam is admitted to thehollow spokes for causing the engine to move in a backward direction.

A traction-engine of the described construction can be managed by anexperienced engineer or driver in the same manner as a vehicle drawn byhorses, and is adapted for all kinds of roads, as it is capable ofascending and desceudiug inclined planes and turning curves. It is alsopossible to arrest the engine when at full speed almost instantaneously;but obviously the engine must be of a firm construction. I

In order to enable the engine to readily pass over ordinary defects inroads, such as ruts and ridges, the driving-wheels must be made of thelargest diameter possible.

In order to maintain the steam-boiler in the same plane whether theengine be ascending or descending inclined planes or traveling on alevel road, I propose to weight therear portion of the boiler, or tohang the latter in such a manner that a preponderance of weight shallexist at the rear end of the boiler. Furthermore a caster-wheel, V,mounted on a vertical screw-spindle, Q, can be raised and lowered bymeans of a hand-wheel, T, so as to preserve the proper level of theboiler and attached parts.

W is the platform for the fireman, who can also manage thelast-described parts.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In a traction or road engine, a pair of revolvin g wheels turningindependently of each other on a fixed axle, and provided with a seriesof sliding feet or shoes projected radially outward from the peripheryof the wheels, so as to exert a traction force upon the ground and aradial pressure upon the wheel-axle, substantially as herein shown anddescribed.

2. In a traction or road engine, a revolving driving-wheel having a hubprovided with steam passages, hollow spokes, sliding pistons,piston-rods carrying shoes or feet, and steam-tubes, in combination witha stationary steam box or chest having means for regulating theadmission of steam to the drivingwheel, substantially as herein setforth.

3. The steam-chest provided with an apertured face-plate and dividedinto steam inlet and exhaust compartments, and having slides or valvesand suitable devices for operating the latter, in combination with thefixed axle and the revolving traction-wheel, having steamchannelscorresponding with the apertures in the steam-chest, andradially-sliding traction feet or shoes, substantially as and for thepurpose set forth. 7

In testimonywhereof I have signed myname to this specification in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

RICHARD BROJ A.

Witnesses:

GERARD VON NAWROCKI, BERTHOLD ROI.

